Switched From Tubes To SS???Glad You Did???


As the title says I'm looking for those who have changed from Tube Front Ends to SS(especially mid level gear)& am wondering if you've been happy with the change,what if anything you miss about tubes & what you've gained by switching to SS.Thanks guys,take care.
freediver

Showing 8 responses by wolf_garcia

I do have issues with my tube smartphone...it seems to be burning a hole in my pants, and waiting 40 seconds to answer a call while the tubes warm up seems to result in a lot of missed calls...it does sound better though.
I've said it before: Tubes are more fun. There, I said it again. Anybody currently using SS amps for anything other than live sound reinforcement is anti-fun. I'm sorry, but it's true, and there's nothing wrong with that so don't feel bad as there are a lot of people in the "anti-fun" boat. Big boat.
Yeah yeah yeah...doesn't it seem idiotically simplistic to make a judgement call about this particular area of aesthetic esoterica? And does anybody realize what I just wrote made no sense? I WAS joking around but I might have been accidentally correct...or not...tough room...tough room...whew...
Relative pathological or hysterical tonal merit opinions notwithstanding, I enjoy tube swapping as a user friendly tone change vehicle to a degree that I can't imagine not being able to do that. I find the tactile and visual aspects of a tube amp (with tubes I can see) so appealing that the only SS amp I could imagine using has to have at least a meter to look at...I seem to have needs. I'm thinking of designing a display case for my extra tubes with little LEDs under each tube so they glow harmlessly. Official name: The Garcia Tube Display and Dust Protector Art Thing. Try doing that with a display of transistors...not so pretty now is it!
I never wink unless something unwanted gets in my eye, but that's more of a blink. Also, at my house on the lake (which doesn't actually exist), we always look at tubes as fun. I think we're just wired for fun around here. I also think car tires are "fun" which may serve to illustrate my threshold of fun.
I suppose I should be more succinct in my description of tube swapping benefits...I meant it changes the SOUND. I think replacing the 6550s in my amp with KT120s made it snappier...although I'm not sure, but I am sure I'm not interested in it sounding like a solid state amp particularly. It did make me feel better so there's that.
Phaelon...yeah...the different tube sets I've tried all sound great and do have their own little characteristics, but the KT120 has such ease to it I think it does do a more transformitive improvement. I've recently spoken to someone at "thetubestore" and got some really interesting opinions on 12ax7s...recommending a new Chinese select over the new Gold Lions to insure "clarity and accuracy" over "warmth".